Whew! It's been a busy week and it's only Tuesday evening!
Since the board meeting took place tonight, let's start there. It was an interesting meeting, especially looking at it from a candidate's lens. The biggest observation/need that I saw was that the board doesn't seem to be functioning as a group of people who all have collective buy-in for one vision of the district. I believe that as soon as the new board members are sworn in, the board and administrators should go on a retreat in order to build relationships among each other. This should be a time for visioning and building of trust. After following the Rolla school board for more than a decade, I have found they function as a team, Tonight, I felt like I witnessed a board meeting that operated like an individual sport, not as cohesive team. That may be too critical of them, but it was an outsider's perception. For our district to be successful, the school board needs to operate and show confidence together. The board sets the tone for the community. My perception of the tone was: tense, brief, and fairly critical of the administration and each other as board members. Again, I admit that this may be an unfair characterization, but it was my perception while in the room. I don't believe it was a conducive environment for raising morale, fixing our problems, and coming together as a community. As I was studying for the candidate forum, I was looking at the strategic plans of the buildings. We are (and should be) in somewhat of a holding pattern in until final budget decisions and superintendency have been made. However, those strategic plans should drive conversations and decisions. In the board meetings I have attended -- they have not been mentioned at all. Perhaps there is a reason for this, but this plan is featured prominently on the School Board's "eBoard" website. When I worked for the University, I learned that these documents are incredibly important to have a unified direction to move forward. This document should guide virtually every decision. When I had to adjust to this way of thinking as a staff member, it was difficult and frustrating. However, as time went on, it made my work seem even more valuable. I think focusing on this strategic plan could help bring confidence to everyone. We would see (hopefully) progress instead of focusing on the negatives that we live with. The board was (and should be) watchful of the expenditures that they approve. There were several questions related to specific expenditures on the Pcard and journal entries/checks. We are in a tight financial position. However, I felt like many of the expenditure questions were fairly pointed and the underlying tone was critical. As a board member, there's a fine (and often difficult) line here. The board should not micromanage expenditures, and if there are questions -- I feel like they should likely be addressed one-on-one with the superintendent who can answer it and perhaps address it proactively instead of being 'called out' in front of everyone for defending expenditures that are within the budget that the board itself approves. In my opinion, the board should be more concerned about if these expenditures are within the budgeted amounts. The board has a fiduciary responsibility to be fiscally sound, but if there's a perception of micromanaging at the faculty/staff/administrative levels, this will only hurt morale. In a nutshell, I felt like the Board is in the need of a leader. The board needs a leader would be willing to support the administration in finding solutions to our financial hardships, cultivating relationships among the community, practices transparency, and is an outside-the-box thinker. Enough about tonight. What about last night? I really enjoy meeting people and talking education policy. I'm probably a nerd because of that. It feeds my soul in many ways, to hear people's opinions and learn from others. I was asked two questions by multiple people last night that I thought I would share my thoughts on. 1) What is my opinion on a 4-day school week? The current research shows there are minimal (if any) student achievement improvements and often less than anticipated savings. However, today, my opinion is that I don't think this is a smart idea. The only savings (potentially) is on transportation, food (but often covered/offset by federal funding and should be a net-even proposition), and substitute teachers. Fixed costs remain the same. For example, the district still has to heat/cool the building and there's no savings from salaries and benefits (the largest expenditure of a district). There are questions about how to handle childcare for young children and teenagers alike. Hallsville is a bedroom community for our surrounding areas, meaning the vast majority of the folks aren't able to flex their schedules and stay home one day each week. Would I want my child home (when age appropriate) alone all day for one day each week? I'm not so sure. There also concerns around extracurricular activities that need (and deserve) to practice/play on that additional day of the week that would need to be addressed. 2) What is my opinion on how to improve the technology usage the district? Technology is an important part of our society. I would encourage our district to look at grant opportunities for us as a rural school district in cooperation with the US Dept. of Education and foundations. From my days of advocating for federal grants, I know there are opportunities like the i3 grant (Investing in Innovation) at the federal level that may be able to assist our district. Our children need computers that are functional and up-to-date to learn from. Does each student need their own iPad? I would look toward research before jumping on this trend, especially in this fiscally tight environment. I look forward to working and hearing from more folks as election day is three weeks from today! Let me know your questions, concerns, and I am happy to share my thoughts. Have a great day! Craig
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AuthorHallsville resident. Foster Parent. School board member. Politico. Jesus Follower. Cardinals Fan #MizzouMade Archives
June 2020
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